The Rarest Love
by Innocent heart2
Summary: With his world changing all around him and forces of evil bent on destroying whatever of it that may remain, one night changes everything and leads our hero onto a path in which the entire world's fate truly is in his hands...Pokeshipping
1. The Window into the Future

_**Mizu: I really don't know why but I was suddenly struck with the inspiration for a new Pokémon fanfiction a while back. *shrugs* Meh. Anyways, same as always with it mainly being Pokeshipping. This story is going to be quite unlike all my other Pokémon stories where Ash has already reached the Grand Pokémon Master or whatever I called it before. No, in this story, the heroes face all new challenges in this mix up between the game, manga, and anime worlds~! I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did thinking it up. **_

_**Before we move on though, I want to get several things about this story out of the way. I want to make this perfectly clear. This is my story and thus my OPINIONS. There will most likely be things that not everyone will agree with and that's okay. I just have had a very bad experience when trying to express my opinions in this fandom. This is something that makes me very frustrated with it and thus I am extremely guarded on a lot of these things. It has taken a lot for me to actually convince myself to write this story and post it in the way that I want to and not just throw the idea away so not to deal with all the hate that might be directed at me. However, I absolutely love this story and all the ideas and work that I've poured into it. I have over dozens of pages outlining, reworking, rethinking, and planning this story out so I convey everything that I have in my head as clearly as I can to you all. Also, when it comes to this fandom at least, I am extremely stubborn and do not want to be pushed around. So, if there is anything in this story that you do not like, do not approve of, or generally hate, please don't read this story. It is as simple as that. **_

_**To make sure that you all know what you are getting into, here is a quick list of everything I think others might have a major problem with:**_

_**-I am majorly changing ages to what I see fit and feel they should be:**_

_**Ash: 20**_

_**Misty: 22**_

_**May: 17**_

_**Max: 14**_

_**James: 27**_

_**Brock: 23 or 24**_

_**Tracey: 21**_

_**Drew: 17**_

_**Dawn: 12**_

_**Prof. Oak: 67**_

_**Delia: 44**_

_**Gary: 20**_

_**Jessie: 26**_

_**-Pokémon will die. They will also occasionally be eaten. This story isn't all sunshine and Butterfree.**_

_**-There **__**will**__** be A LOT of OC's. Some will just be there for a chapter while others will be start to finish.**_

_**\- I stopped watching the Anime half way through Diamond and Pearl. I have kept up with what Pokémon he had but…After Sinnoh, I will not be using any of the Anime. I will be mainly using the games for Unova. Moves Pokémon learn there or captured may or may not appear. Same thing for the characters but just to let you guys know, Serena will make an appearance much later.**_

_**-This story is rated M for violence and large amounts of sexual themes. I'm still debating on lemons but am not currently planning on them. However, they are all much older and the sexual tension will not be ignored.**_

_**-There are a lot of characters and Pokémon. They will occasionally go OOC. Please understand two things. One, all of the characters will age 4 tough years during this story so their personalities will change some. Two, I will lose track of things occasionally. For this I apologize in advance.**_

_**-I have never read any of the manga so I am going off of my fiancé's knowledge and what I've read online about them.**_

_**-I never played much attention to stats, natures, and such and that means that while I am doing so for this story, it is my first time in doing so and I will make mistakes. It is really confusing for me but please know that I'm trying.**_

_**-I am going to try and bring in as many of the games as I can but if I don't bring in your personal favorite one, please don't be offended. **_

_**-This story will be LONG. Because of this I am constantly doing research for it. It also means that there may be long breaks between chapters. I will try to avoid these but they are a distinct possibility.**_

_**-As I stated at the top, this is a Pokeshipping story. That means the main couple is Ash and Misty. I will agree that the other girls might have had a crush on Ash but I do not actively ship them. So please…do not request a switch or complain about my choice…If you don't like Pokeshipping, then don't read this story. It's as simple as that. **_

_**I apologize for the lengthy opening author's notes but I just want to make sure everything is out in the open before the story begins.**_

_**Disclaimer time~! I do not own anything to do with Pokémon the anime series, the game franchise, or the manga series. I'm just a fangirl looking through all of her thousands of Pokémon cards while cuddling her stuff Pikachu.**_

* * *

_**Chapter One: The Window into the Future…**_

"_No act of kindness, no matter how small is ever wasted." Aesop_

* * *

The sounds of hurried footsteps resounded throughout the snow covered valley as they drew closer to the safe haven that the local Pokemon Center promised. They were all laughing despite the frigid, swirling wind the tore through them. Within a matter of moments, the entire group rushed through the doors and into the building's warmth. The nurse and her main partner Pokémon stared in confusion at the group, surprised to see so many and to see them all laughing.

"We made it!" a man with black hair that was trapped under a red cap cheered as he collapsed onto the ground before unzipping his jacket to allow a yellow Pokémon to stick out its head, "There you go, buddy~!"

"Pika~!" the Pokémon beamed as it scampered up to his shoulder.

"I can't believe that you were right about the direction," a woman with fiery red hair that was put up to one side, "That's gotta be a first, right Ashy-boy?"

"I couldn't believe it either!" another man, this time with brown spiky hair laughed.

"At first, I thought that the world was coming to an end," yet another man with longish bluish green hair snickered.

"Thank goodness we made it here before the doors were locked," a girl with light brown hair that was significantly longer in the front and a red bandana on sighed in relief.

"Yeah, I was worried that we would have to camp out for the night," a boy with dark greenish, bluish black hair and wide rimmed glasses chuckled as he pulled his glasses off to clean them.

"Camp out in this weather? You're crazy!" A girl in a white cap with long navy blue hair gasped.

"It probably wouldn't be the first time that they've done it," a boy with grass green hair sighed.

"You're right on that, Drew~!" the boy with black hair laughed, standing up, looking over at the shocked nurse, "You must be the Nurse Joy of this center. I'm Ash Ketchum and this is Pikachu."

"Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu greeted.

"Hi, I'm Misty~!" the redheaded girl smiled.

"My name's May and this is my little brother Max," the girl with light brown hair introduced.

"Hi there!" Max waved.

"I'm Tracy," the man with bluish green hair nervously smiled.

"Drew," the green haired man smirked.

"Call me Dawn~!" the girl with navy blue hair giggled.

"And call me love struck~!" the man with spiky hair beamed, hearts replacing his eyes as he materialized in front of the nurse, "May I call you my eternal Jo-_**Ah!**_"

"Okay Lover boy, let's go before you scare the poor woman even more…" Misty sighed as she dragged the man away by his ear, shocking Max and a blue toad Pokémon that suddenly appeared.

"Eh heh heh heh," Ash nervously laughed, "That's Brock and he likes to go gaga a lot…"

"I think that poor Croagunk is in awe of Misty and how she handled Brock," Tracy laughed.

"Probably~!" Ash laughed.

"No matter how many times I see it, I don't think I'll ever get used to seeing how well she keeps him in check," Max sighed.

"Same," Everyone but Ash and Tracy nodded in agreement.

Nurse Joy just blinked before smiling at the group, "You all seem like a lively bunch. I must say that it isn't every day that such a large traveling group comes this way through the valley."

"Oh, we aren't all traveling together," Tracy stated.

"We're just all friends that want to spend Christmas together," Misty finished.

"I see," Nurse Joy smiled, "So how many rooms do you need for while you're here?"

"Let's see, there are nine of us so I think three rooms would be fine for us all," Brock stated.

"Alright, just head up the stairs. You're the only people hear so just pick out whatever rooms you want," the nurse said before returning to her work.

The group let out a large sigh before smiling at each other.

"Let's go fight over who sleeps where~!" Ash cheered before racing up the stairs.

"Oh no you don't, Ashy-boy!" Misty laughed as she chased after him.

Brock let out a deep sigh, "It's good to see him smiling again."

"Yeah," Tracy nodded, "The Professor, Mrs. Ketchum, and even Gary were really worried about him."

"It wasn't like him to get so down like that," Dawn stated as the group slowly made their way to the stairs.

"Keep in mind what caused his depression though," Max pointed out.

"I still can't believe it," May whimpered, shaking her head, "It's just not fair."

"Poor Pikachu thought it was its fault," Drew sighed.

"I know. I don't think I've ever seen it so down before. It was in tears for days…" Brock sighed, "Ash was the only one that could get it to calm down."

"But still…to find out that he could never be a father must have crushed the poor guy," May stated as the group stopped next to the stairs, "He was always boasting on how he would have a giant family when he finished his journey…It was always his second biggest dream…"

"Yeah…" the rest nodded.

"…No one tells Misty this…" Brock said before climbing the rest of the stairs.

* * *

Ash sighed as he looked out the window in the boy's room. On his lap was his beloved partner, Pikachu, sound asleep and oblivious to the pain shrouding his trainer's heart that night. He absentmindedly gently petted the electric rodent, ignoring the slight amount of static coming off its coat, as he allowed his mind to wander. Memories of the past two months flooded his mind as he allowed a few tears slide out of his eyes.

It was two months ago when part of his heart and soul had been shattered. He was attending his annual physical, something he would be stupid to skip, when the doctor first noticed some troubling signs. He didn't explain anything to Ash and just made him…prepare some samples for him to run tests on. He didn't understand it but didn't really think about it. Even if the doctor had told him what was going on, he probably wouldn't have been able to understand it.

A couple days after that and a couple more tests, the doctor asked Brock to come in with him. That put Ash off a bit. He never liked people seeing him vulnerable especially when he was in a doctor's office. They made him jumpy. Anyway, Brock didn't really think anything of it until the doctor pulled out a file. The man's face looked like he was a bit tired. The doctor then began listing off all these scientific terms and lists of causes for something that Ash couldn't comprehend. But from the way that Brock's face paled, Ash knew it wasn't going good.

Then he finally said it. He said the word that even Ash knew. Infertile. He was infertile with no hopes of ever having children of his own. In that instant, the man who had faced downed so many villains that were bent on throwing the world off kilter, had stared down more ticked down legendary Pokémon than he cared to count, and who was the chosen one to protect the balance of the world felt his entire world crumble out from underneath him. He didn't even realize the tears that freely escaped his eyes that day.

He didn't remember leaving the doctor's office or the walk back to the Pokémon center where he, Brock, and Dawn were currently staying. He said nothing as Brock led him into the building and Dawn came prancing up to him with Pikachu. The trainer didn't even spare his first Pokémon and closest friend a glance as he stumbled up the stairs to their homes. Of course, the others followed but for once, Ash didn't care if they saw him. He was too far gone to care if they saw him break.

And break he did. He made it into the room but fell to his knees once he reached the center. Gritting his teeth for a moment, he threw back his head in a heart wrenching cry filled with so much pain and frustration that it shocked the two that knew nothing of what had happened with the doctor's office. His emotions flew out of whack at that moment. Anger, sorrow, pain, rage, loneliness, desperation all flew through him so fast that he didn't know what he should feel. All he knew then was that he wanted to be alone.

Quickly standing up, Ash made quick work of stripping himself of his specialized belt that held all his poke balls with his Pokémon. He stomped back over to where his three friends stood in the door way. Thrusting his belt and for some reason his hat into Brock's hands, he turned his back to them, shoulders trembling as he growled at them to leave him alone.

For once, they listened to him.

While Ash experienced his first breakdown, Brock led the two who knew nothing to their other room. There, he had them sit down before he said a word. They sat in silence for a while as the breeder desperately searched for the words that escaped him at seeing his dearest friend finally break. With a heavy sigh, Brock turned to Dawn and an anxious Pikachu. And told them the truth.

The look of horror that spread across Pikachu's face broke Brock's heart once again. As the electric rodent ran out of the room, most likely to try and comfort its best friend, he did nothing to stop it. He leaned against the wall, running a hand through his hair as Dawn stared at him in confusion. Of course she didn't know. She had never asked Ash about what he was going to do when he reached his dream. Ash had never told her his plans to have as many children as his future wife would allow.

Hours were spent trying to explain things to Dawn before Brock gave up and went to check up on Pikachu. He wasn't surprised to see a worried Nurse Joy staring at the Pokémon that weakly pawed at the door that kept it from its trainer. Her hands looked like she had tried multiple times to pull Pikachu away, a few marks from Pikachu's tiny claws, teeth, and electricity. Said electric rodent was still trying to get in to reach Ash, tears sliding out of its eyes and dampening its fur.

Being careful to not startle the Pokémon, Brock walked up and gently knocked on the door. There was no sound coming from the other side of the door. Gulping, the former gym leader spoke through the door to try and talk the trainer into opening the door, if only to allow Pikachu in. After a few moments, the breeder slowly opened the door to reveal an empty room. Quickly, those gathered raced to the open window. They stared out into the forest that surrounded that side of the building, futilely trying to spot the trainer.

Brock barely managed to grab Pikachu before it tried to jump out the window to search. The Pokémon struggled with all its might to get free from the breeder, but Brock didn't let up. Nurse Joy, still not knowing what was going on, quickly shut the window. As Pikachu cried out, Brock finally let it go in favor of locking the window. Immediately after, the electric rodent began pounding on the window.

Leading the nurse out of the room, Brock had never been so glad that most rooms in the Pokemon Centers had begun to use windows that could stand most attacks from any Pokémon…

For the next three days, Ash was nowhere to be seen. Pikachu never left that room, somehow thinking that this was its entire fault. Anyone who went to take food to the poor Pokémon had to be ready to catch it. Brock ordered all those that did to make sure that Pikachu never left that room until Ash came back. There was one time that Pikachu did get out though. It was when it was Dawn's turn to take the food to the incredibly strong electric mouse. She still didn't understand why it was such a big deal. In fact, she thought that Ash was overacting to everything and that he was a jerk because they would now miss her next contest. So she didn't heed Brock's order and opened the door wide.

Thank goodness that Infernape happened to be out of its poke ball and was paying attention enough that it managed to grab the desperate Pokémon before it made it out of the building. After that, Dawn was forbidden from going into that room until Ash came back. Of course, she still didn't understand and tried to force Brock to stop being so paranoid. She didn't understand until she caught Brock when he called Mrs. Delia Ketchum.

Dawn would never forget the look of complete horror on the woman's face. At first she thought that it was because she herself would never have grandchildren. But then she started demanding to see Ash, Dawn started to think that maybe there was more to this development. She just kept going on and on about how Brock needed to go find Ash and that she was heading that way. It took Brock about twenty minutes to calm her down enough for her to explain things.

Once she was calm enough, Mrs. Ketchum quickly set out on a tale of a side of Ash that Dawn had never known. She told Dawn of how Ash's father didn't actually see Ash for the first time until he was four. By then, Ash had already started to be picked on by other in their small town of Pallet. That first visit only lasted for two weeks and then he was gone yet again. For a while though, Ash didn't mind that his father was gone yet again. But that all changed when Ash was six.

When Ash turned six, he had seen his father only for five weeks in his entire short life. But he didn't care because while he teased him, Ash had his best friend, Gray Oak…

That is until tragedy stuck the tight knit community Gary's parents were suddenly killed by a drunk driver on their way back from work in Viridian City. The Oak family was devastated. Luckily, Professor Oak was able to take in his two grandchildren instead of one of their relatives. Unfortunately, Gray became somewhat closed off to his closest friend. He began treating Ash worse than any other kid and thus the rest began to treat him worse as well.

Mrs. Ketchum remembered when Ash came back from trainer school in tears. He ran to her and begged her not to make him go back. What could she have done but agreed? Then, at dinner that night, Ash quietly asked his mother when his father would be back again for the first time. When she told him that she didn't know, she had never seen her son's face with such a heart breaking expression on it. That night, after she had put her son to bed, Mrs. Ketchum called her husband and begged him to come back home. For what seemed like hours, she tried to convince him to come back for their son. But it did little good. He promised to be back for Ash's birthday but no sooner. Sighing, the woman gave in for the night.

The next day, she allowed her precious son to sleep in as she made his favorite breakfast. When it was well after when his first class would have started, Mrs. Ketchum finally went up to her son's room. She smiled gently as she watched him sleep, blissfully free of the pain that had captured his being the previous day. Gently shaking him awake, she laughed at how he still fought waking up. After maneuvering him into a sitting position, the mother carried her son to breakfast.

As he slowly woke up at the breakfast table, Mrs. Ketchum called the school to inform them that Ash would no longer be attending any more classes. Not five minutes later, the household phone rang. It was Professor Oak. He was calling because Ash hadn't been in class when he came to talk about the starter Pokémon. Sighing, Delia just told him to question Gary. When the call had ended, Ash was halfway through breakfast and was eagerly awaiting her arrival at the table. Smiling, the mother sat down and told him the good news about his father. Delia had never seen her son's face light up so much. He began questioning her, wanting to know everything about his father. The woman was just relieved to see her son's spirits lifted.

Months passed and Ash never returned to school. Gary never apologized, much to the Professor's dismay, and Ash stopped spending time with anyone inside Pallet town. Instead, he either went to professor Oak's lab or the forest nearby. And every day, he bragged to all the Pokemon around him that his father was coming home for his birthday. He did so every single day until…

His birthday had come and gone. The child held hope that his father would still be coming for three weeks. At the end of the third week, Ash unfortunately ran into Gary. His future rival began to tease Ash about how his father didn't even come back for his birthday. Ash ignored it the best he could until Gary said something unforgivable. He said that his father sure must have hated having such a loser for a son.

Ash snapped. Tackling the other boy to ground, the young boys experience their first fight. Thankfully Professor Oak was nearby and separated the two. But as soon as he did so, Gary started up with the insults again. This time, Ash ran off to the sanctuary of the forest.

Hours later, Delia found her son crying at the base of a huge tree. He looked up and glared at her but she knew that it was meant for the missing half of her heart. The boy growled out how his father had promised that he would be there. He poured at his soul to his mother and the Pokémon that had come out to check on him. Rubbing his eyes viciously to stop his tears, he cried of how his father broke the most sacred of things: a promise, something should _**never**_ be broken. With the gathered Pokémon and his mother there as his witnesses, the boy's aversion for his father began to fester within his heart.

That evening, as Delia carried her son emotionally weakened home, the man who had broken the sacred promise appeared in front of their front door. Thankfully, Ash was fast asleep so he couldn't throw another fit. But when Delia saw her husband, she honestly didn't know whether to feel overjoyed that he was back or overcome with frustration. When he spotted her, he first started to ask why no one was at home. His words caught in his throat when he saw Ash on her back. Instantly, his paternal instincts finally kicked in and he was lifting his son free of his wife. Delia felt her heart melt as she watched the man gently cradle his child to his person.

Tired of the excitement of that day, the woman decided to just put her son to bed before doing the same with herself. Leading her husband through the house, she stood off to the side and watched as he tenderly placed their son on his bed that was covered in Pikachu. Sighing, she didn't answer the worried looks that he shot her as they headed off for their room. She was too tired to talk. She'd save that for the morning.

Morning came sooner than she would have liked. Delia was awoken in the middle of the night be a pitiful voice in the doorway of her bedroom. Sitting up and half awake, the woman made out the image of her son standing there with tears threatening to fall, clinging to his Pikachu pillow as he stared at her as if fearing that she would send him away. When asked what was wrong, Ash had just whispered that he had had a bad dream and didn't want to be alone. A warm, yet worried feeling gripped the woman's heart as she motioned for him to sleep with her. A bright, relieved smile graced his face as he quickly rushed the other side of the bed. Then he froze, eyes wide as he stared at the sleeping face of his father.

Delia looked over, about to ask what was wrong when she realized that Ash didn't know his father was home. Cursing under her breath, she turned in time to watch her son climb over the man she loved, making sure to do it hard enough to wake him. Her husband jolted awake, and nearly started to scold Ash when he realized what had happened. Of course, Delia stepped in and made sure that if he said a word, he would be forced to sleep on the lumpy couch. Meanwhile, Ash had snugly placed himself in between the two, trying to get as close to his mother as possible.

The next morning, Delia awoke to see that her husband had already awoken and was down stairs attempting to make breakfast. Leaving her son to save the man she married, a feeling of dread began to build up. As the two worked to save many of the dishes that he had almost ruined, neither noticed the drowsy Ash that had appeared and sat himself at the table. It was only when they turned to put all the food down was the child's appearance noted. Of course, her husband was all smiles as they sat down on either side of Ash.

Throughout breakfast, Delia could feel the impending explosion that would follow build and build. Her husband tried desperately to start a conversation with their son with little success. It wasn't until after they had eaten and Delia had started on the dishes did the man finally step on a landmine. Said landmine was when he asked why Ash wasn't getting ready for school. He teased him saying that he knew that he missed him but he couldn't play hooky. Ash had roughly replied that he didn't go to school anymore. When his father asked why, the boy stood up in a huff, snapped at his father to stop acting like he cared, and then raced off to his bedroom.

Delia sighed as her husband's confused and distressed face turned to her for an explanation. Sitting back down, she proceeded to explain everything that had happened since she called begging for him to come home. She told him how Ash was bullied constantly for his father never being around. She told him of how he lost his best friend and how said best friend now tormented him worse than any other child their age. How Ash waited patiently for him to keep his promise even after weeks had passed.

Once the explanation had concluded, Delia watched as her husband rushed up the stairs to their son's room. Sighing, she slowly followed, not wanting to get in his way. She leaned in the doorway as the man promised again and again that he would never do such a thing again. Ash seemed skeptical but soon came around, desperate to believe the man he wished to get to know.

For the next two months, the father and son duo became famous throughout the town. The two were inseparable for the full two months. Delia had never seen her son so happy. Her husband tried to help teach Ash some of the things he would learn in school. While Ash had never been too bright, he tried his best to absorb everything his father said. For two months, everything was perfect and the Ketchum's all felt as if they were finally a family.

However, nothing can last forever. At the end of the two months, Ash's father had to leave again. But before he left, he promised that he would be back for Christmas. So for the rest of the year, Ash waited patiently for his father to reappear. Every day, he would run errands for his mother like running out to the nearby greenhouse to pick up a few hundred pounds of fertilizer or just pick up some groceries before heading out to the forest to play with the Pokémon. In doing this, he managed to stay out of sight of all his fellow children and out of trouble. Day in and day out, the small child did this until Christmas had come and gone with no sign of his father.

It wouldn't be for another two months after the promised returned that his father would reappear. Said reappearance only lasted for a couple of days before he disappeared into the world yet again. These couple of days were used to convince Ash that he would never again break a promise to him. This time, the young boy was much more skeptical of his father's word but nevertheless decided to give him another chance. But even Delia knew that a wound had appeared on their son's heart towards his father that nothing would ever fix by now.

So Ash wasn't so surprised that his father broke his promise and missed his birthday again. When his father finally did come back and promise to be back before the end of three months, the boy found himself dimly hoping that he would but refused to get his hopes up. This pattern continued for the next couple of years until the final promise that the man broke to his son. His promise to be home before he left on his journey. It would have been the last time the two would be able to see each other until Ash finished his own journey. When his father did not appear by the day he left, Ash had given up all hope on the man, a wound deeply engraved on his heart that would never be healed.

When Mrs. Ketchum finished her story, Dawn was both awestruck and confused. What did any of that have to do with Ash being so devastated about not having kids? Yes what happened to him ruined the image of a father for him but what did that have to do with him having kids? She was about to ask when Mrs. Ketchum beat her to it. She told of how the few times that his father was home, he made it a point to make sure that Ash would have such a large family drive that he wouldn't have a choice but try to have as many kids as he could. He would constantly talk of how important families were. It got to the point that the notion of children became almost like a false dream to Ash.

Mrs. Ketchum sighed when Dawn asked what she meant by a false dream. With a sad smile gracing her face, the mother just asked what seven year old in their right mind would constantly dream about having ten kids of their own running around. When he wasn't training with his father or mother that was all that the boy's mind was on. It wasn't by his conscious choice though. She would have understood if it came up later because her son was always overzealous with everything he did but when he was a child, it worried her.

When he finally had given up on his father, Delia had thought that the absurd notion of family that was planted in his mind would fade away. No such luck. If anything, it grew even bigger as Ash began to declare that he would become the father to his children that he never had. He began to plan how they would go out on monthly outings and he would be home for dinner every day, even if he did become a Pokemon master. No matter what was said to him, family was a subject that he had no choice but aim for. It was a wish that wasn't originally his and one that he wouldn't have dreamed for until it was his time to…

Brock finally stepped in and explained that when he and Misty first met Ash, he would brag at least once a week about the huge family that he would have one day. It honestly worried both him and Misty to the point that they secretly called Mrs. Ketchum to question her. That's when she told them the story behind it. Misty had been so ticked off that it took all Brock had to hold her back from finding Ash's father and bashing his head in with her mallet. After they found out, they made it their job to try and get Ash to forget the false dream he had, at least until he became older and had found the woman he loved more than anything.

Finally, Dawn understood why never being able to have children broke the strongest trainer she knew. Excusing herself, she quickly ran off to their rented room and flung herself on the bed, tears flowing from her eyes like rivers.

Three days later, Ash returned, a wide laughing smile gracing his face. The smile was bright on his face but his eyes were dull and almost dead. When he opened the door to the room Pikachu was locked in, he was quickly Volt Tackled to the ground. The electric rodent clung to its trainer the whole day, refusing to let him go for anything. It got to the point that Ash had to hand feed it because it refused to let go to eat. The next day was a little better but for the majority of the day the Pokémon could not be pried off its trainer.

As the weeks passed, Brock noticed how while Ash seemed to be slowly returning to his old self, he continued to drift in and out of a trance of sorts. He didn't talk as much as he normally would as they traveled from town to town. Most of the time, he had Misty's Lure out and would stare at it for hours. While this worried the rest, nobody said anything. They were too afraid that the boy would have another breakdown if anything was said.

Finally though, Brock had had enough of seeing Ash in such pain. So while they were in yet another town, he quickly set to work calling up all of their friends and convincing them to come and meet up with them for Christmas. Most of them, while they wanted to come and see them, at first didn't think that such a quick reunion was a good idea. That is until Brock explained his reasoning. It was after hearing this that all of those that needed convincing immediately started packing their things.

The only that didn't need convincing was Misty. Misty would always jump at the chance to see Ash again but she was the one that was the least likely to come due to three notorious problems. What she needed was Brock to convince her sisters to agree to allow her to come.

This was quite the challenge, but after some bribing and the like, the breeder finally pulled it off. Now that that was taken care of, Brock made sure that nobody said a word to Ash about meeting up with their friends so that it would be a surprise that would lift his spirits without getting any hopes up.

The way Ash's face lit up when he spotted all of their friends as they entered the next town a week later was priceless. Even more so when he laid eyes on his longtime friend and love Misty. And yes, Brock would gladly call her his love to him seeing as he confessed to him several months earlier that he did in fact love her. Seeing the boy revert to when he was younger, everyone laughed as Ash and Misty instantly began bickering with each other. At first, those not used to seeing the two together could be seen trying to stop the arguing. But that all stopped when they saw the happiest smile ever on the trainer's face.

That's what led to where Ash was now, sitting on the windowsill in confusion. He knew why Brock did what he did and that Dawn was now informed of his childhood. He knew that Misty didn't know what they had found out. Nobody had said anything to him but one of the perks of being more friendly to Pokémon than humans was you start to understand what they say. He had overheard his Pokémon on many occasions after all their friends got together talking about Brock's brilliant plan. Normally, Ash would have been furious that nobody had told him but he just couldn't find it in him at the moment.

Sighing, Ash gently banged his head against the window, staring out into the snowy world around them. Deep in his heart, he knew that it could have been worse. He could have been dying from some mysterious disease and only have a few weeks left to live. His growth spurts, which were finally kicking in full blast, could have caused some kind of stress on his body and he would have to give up training for a while. He could have some kind of disease that would eventually leave him unable to travel. His yearly physical could have brought up so many other things that would have been a million times worse that he should be counting his blessings.

But something in him just kept reminding him of the dream family he would never have now. The pain from such a thought crushed his heart. No matter what he did, he couldn't get away from the pain of it all. The worst part of it all, Ash was starting to question why he had wanted such a large family for such a long time. He had never questioned why, thinking that it was just something he wanted due to the fact that he had such a small broken one. But now, he wasn't so sure…

"Hm?" Ash sounded, eyes catching movement down by the Pokemon Center doors.

There were two hooded figures carrying two bundles of blankets. They stood in front of the doors for a moment, as if waiting for something.

"Idiots, everyone knows that Pokemon Centers lock their doors at midnight," Ash sighed, standing up to go get Nurse Joy to let them in, "What are they carrying anyway? Two baby Pokémon?"

Before he could take a single step, the two hooded people quickly put the bundles down by the door and started running away.

"O-Oi!" Ash shouted, pressing himself to the glass, ignoring the fact that he just woken in the room up, "Where are they going!"

Without thinking about himself, or the others in the room, Ash flung open the window. He shouted at the two, startling them and prompting them to run even faster. Clad only in his pajama pants, the trainer jumped out of the window. His first instinct was to chase after them but something called his attention to the two bundles they had left. Slowly walking up to them, he noticed a note safety pinned on one of them. Pulling off the note, he knelt next to the bundles as he read it.

"To whoever finds these two bundles of joy; please forgive us for being so cowardly to abandon them as such. We just couldn't risk our families finding out about them. Please look after them and love them in ways that we could not…" Ash read, eyebrows furrowing together before he returned his attention to the bundles.

A horrible feeling of dread began to well up inside of him. Ignoring that shouts and curses coming from the room that he jumped out of, the trainer reached out with a shaky hand to uncover one of the bundles.

"Holy-!" Ash screamed, jumping back from the bundle.

What he thought had been a Pokémon turned out to be a human baby.

* * *

_**Mizu: Aaaand cut~! *nods satisfied* Not really where I wanted to cut this but it'll do to help keep the chapters just the right length. **_

_**Ash: Woah…Most of the beginning of the story is a flashback…**_

_**Pikachu: Pika…**_

_**Mizu: Technically, it isn't a flashback because I took care to make it in the present instead of actually having to go through the whole thing a flashback would force me to. Anyways, here's the first chapter~! Remember that I love all reviews and suggestions~! Ciao for now everyone~!**_

_**Pikachu: Pi Pikachu~!**_


	2. Innocent Pools of Love

_**Mizu: Ugh…College has returned once again…Good news is that I'm technically a senior~! Yay! Bad news is that I probably won't be graduating this school year…boooooo…stupid million credit hour major and minors…On top of my major classes, I am taking three different language classes so I shall be busy. Spanish IV and Introduction to Literature (Spanish) along with German I…I can do this! I just have to keep all my flash cards separate! **_

_**Anyways, here's the next chapter, just kind of an off chapter to lead to the next step, just like the next couple. The only reason that they're being split apart is to keep the chapters a decent length (instead of the twenty pages they would be). I mean, that length of chapter's is cool but it's not good for some because then you have to keep reaching the same length for all the rest that follow. Disclaimer time: I don't own anything to do with the Pokémon series or franchise. If I did, I would be the happiest otaku in the world and I wouldn't be worried about running out of food between paychecks…**_

* * *

_**The Rarest Love: Chapter Two- Innocent pools of Love…**_

_"Love is but the discovery of ourselves in others, and the delight in the recognition." - Alexander Smith_

* * *

"Holy-!" Ash screamed, jumping back from the bundle.

What he thought had been a baby Pokémon turned out to be a human baby. Gathering his wits and courage once more, the trainer slowly uncovered the other bundle to reveal another child. Letting out another freaked out shout, Ash stared at the babes. Both had jet black hair like his own, but both had a streak of either red or blue running through their bangs. After staring at the two for what seemed like forever, Ash quickly snapped out of his trance and gently picked up the two babes.

"Ash! Why did you jump out of the bloody window!" Brock's voice sounded above the other men that he shared a room with, reminding just how he got outside.

"Never mind that! Somebody get down here and let me in!" Ash shouted.

"Forget it! You jumped out the window so you can just climb back in!" Tracy snapped.

"I don't have any hands to use to climb back in!" Ash snapped back, stomping his feet, "Just hurry up!"

"What the crud is going on out there!" Misty shouted, flinging up the girls' room's window.

"Misty! Why'd you open the window!" May whined.

"Ash Ketchum, why are you outside shouting up a storm!" Misty snapped.

"I wouldn't be outside if somebody would just let me in already!" Ash snapped back, holding the two babies closer to his person.

"Why are you outside anyway?" Max asked, taking note of the bundles in Ash's arms, "And what are those?"

"I'm out here cause I saw two people abandon these two here at the doors so let me in already!" Ash shouted.

"What!" Everyone from both rooms shouted before flooding out of their rooms to fetch Nurse Joy.

Meanwhile, Ash stood outside, just now thinking that maybe jumping out of the window wasn't such a great idea. Holding both babes as close as he could, the trainer felt a sudden anger fill his being as he thought of the two that abandoned the two. How could they do such a thing? Why weren't they happy with the two blessings they had been given? As the doors were unlocked and flung open, Ash found his anger starting to grow more and more as he thought about what would have happened if he hadn't saw them. It was below freezing outside and the two babes were wrapped only in thin blankets like the ones that are used in hospitals for newborns.

"So did you see who abandoned those Pokémon?" Max asked, automatically thinking just what Ash did.

"They aren't Pokémon," Ash said, turning to the nurse, "Do you have any small beds?"

"Yes," the nurse nodded before going off to get one.

"What do you mean they aren't Pokémon?" Misty whispered, coming up to Ash's side.

Ash sighed as he shifted the two bundles gently so that everybody could see. A unanimous round of gasps ran through the group as they laid eyes on the sleeping babes. Not a word was said as the trainer made his way over to one of the couches in the lobby. Sitting down, Ash let out a long sigh. Misty was instantly at his side with her arms outstretched. Smiling weakly at his love, he motioned for her to take one of them.

"Wh-Who could do such a thing?" May whimpered as the group surrounded the two on the couch.

"Pikapi…" Pikachu whimpered, jumping onto its trainer's shoulders before rubbing its cheek against his own.

"I'm fine, Pikachu," Ash lied.

"It's okay, Ash. We know how you feel about family," Misty tried to comfort her best friend.

Ash sighed, "It just baffles me…What on earth would make you abandon your own flesh and blood? The note they left said that they couldn't let their parents find out about them but that isn't a good excuse to give up your children…"

"Some people just aren't meant to be parents," Tracy sighed, "They think it would be fun to do the deed but when they're faced with the consequences they suddenly become so overcome with the fear that everything will change and do even more stupid things."

"I guess so," Ash said before shaking his head, "But what would have happened if I hadn't noticed them? They were only wrapped in these thin blankets…They would have probably died by time Nurse Joy came to unlock the doors…"

"Like I said, they get scared and do even more stupid things…" Tracy shook his head.

Ash stared at the child in his arms and felt something grip at his heart strings. It was so unfair…He would love to be able to have such beautiful blessings but was unable and yet two people who would never love them were their parents. Tightening his grip slightly, the trainer fought to keep the tears from forming. Brock and everyone else watched as he struggled with his own emotions. It broke their hearts to see their dear friend in such a state. It truly wasn't fair but as trainers that had traveled the world over, they all also knew that life wasn't meant to be fair. Getting by through all the heartbreaks and hardships placed in front of them is what made people strong.

'Even so,' Brock thought as he stared at his closest friend, 'Just because they are strong does not mean that they don't have weaknesses or breaking points. Ash just recovered from reaching one such breaking point…I don't know if he's prepared to face another…'

A low gasp broke everyone out of their trance. Immediately, they began to frantically search for the source. When they realized that it had come from the trainer on the couch before them, they began to worry even more than they had been. His eyes were wide and locked on the child who was in his arms. Following his eyes, everyone's breath caught in their throats from what they saw. Deep, pure cerulean eyes with so much life swirling in them stared up at Ash with so much wonder and love.

Tears suddenly started flowing out of the normally strong trainer's eyes. Biting his trembling lip, Ash pulled the child into a tight embrace as he desperately tried to regain control on his emotions. Misty instantly tried to place a hand on her best friend's shoulder when a gurgle from her bundle distracted her. Returning her attention to the child she held, she felt her breath catch in her throat once more.

The child she held had eyes that were filled with just as much wonder and love as its sibling in its burnt cinnamon depths. Her gasp drew Ash's and everyone else's attention. Everyone looked between the two babes and soon came up with the same conclusion…

…The babes in their friends' arms could have easily been their own children…

Ash stared at the two babes and soon gave up on trying to hold back his emotions. With tears flowing freely down his scarred cheeks, he unwrapped the child he held enough to find its tiny hands. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he placed his pinky next to one of the tiny hands. Without a second of hesitation, the child's pudgy little fingers wrapped around his one and held on with all its might. The second it did so, a sudden wave of warmth flooded into the trainer's heart, pushing out the darkness and doubt of the fear of never having a family. Weakly, smiling at the child, he motioned for Misty to give him back the other.

Silence surrounded the group as they found their eyes locked on their precious friend hold the two babes in his arms.

"H-Here's the bed," Nurse Joy said as she and a Chansey quickly rolled out a small hospital bed.

"Th-Thank you," Tracy said in place of Ash.

"Nur…Nurse Joy?" Ash sounded.

"Yes?" the nurse blinked.

"What would be the proper course of action in a situation like this?" Ash asked, not even looking at the woman.

"Well, we should call Officer Jenny and then she would probably take these two to an orphanage to either be adopted or wait until the parents are found," Nurse Joy stated, looking at the two babes, "Problem is, the closest orphanage is a two day walk from here…"

"Well, I'm sure Officer Jenny would be able to take them there faster in one of her vehicle-" Max started to weakly laugh.

"No…" Ash said so low that it was almost missed.

"No?" Brock questioned.

"She won't have to take them to the orphanage," Ash stated, slowly standing to place the babes on the bed provided.

"What are you talking about, Ash?" May asked, "If she doesn't, then who will?"

"She won't have to because I want to adopt them," Ash said, completely serious.

There was silence for a good minute before Misty nervously laughed while standing up as well, "G-Good one, Ashy boy. You always knew how to break a tense atmosphere."

"I'm not kidding, Misty," Ash said, turning to her while Pikachu jumped down to the bed.

"F-For real?" she gaped, "You're really not joking?"

"Why would I joke about something like this?" Ash nearly scoffed, "You all know my opinion on family. Besides, I would be a fool to leave these two."

"But what about your journey?" Drew asked, "You can't believe that you'll be able to travel and raise two kids at the same time."

"Who said about traveling with them?" Ash questioned, "I'll probably go back to Pallet and stay there until they're around three or four before setting off again. Mom will be ecstatic to have grandchildren and whenever I go off on my journey, if I don't take them, I'll make sure that I'm only gone for at most two months."

"How will you be able to do that if you go to a new region?" Dawn questioned, one of the few that seriously thought that this was a bad idea.

"I have a Charizard that is quite capable of flying anywhere in the world overnight," Ash boasted proudly, "I just have to call up the Charizard valley and explain everything and I'm sure that he'll be happy to help me out~!"

"N-Not too sure about how much Charizard would appreciate that but I've been wrong before," Tracy whimpered, "But are you sure that you'll be able to do that considering your past?"

Ash shrugged, "Maybe this is just a sign that it's time to go after Red."

"_**R-RED!?**_" Everyone screamed.

"A-Are you insane, Ash!" Max snapped, "Y-You haven't even been able to defeat an Elite Four member when you randomly meet up with them!"

"Forget the Elite Four! What about all the region's Champions that you will have to go through before you even _**dream**_ of climbing Mount Silver to challenge Red!" Tracy shouted.

"You'd have to be out of your mind if you're thinking of going after Red as you are!" May yelled.

"No one ever said that you _had_ to go through every region's Elite Four and Champions," Ash pointed out, "And you guys seem to forget that we've been to Mount Silver before so I at least know my way around the base."

"That's not the point!" Brock snapped, tempted to smack his friend upside his head, "Nobody has _**ever**_ defeated Red before! Hence why he is called the World's Greatest Pokemon Master! I don't care how strong you think you are, there is absolutely no way that you're ready to go after him!"

"That's right! Red's the strongest trainer in the world!" Dawn screeched, "How could you defeat a guy like him?"

"Easy, I train my Pokémon for the next couple of years while I'm in Pallet and then we challenge him," Ash said, totally serious, "You'll never know what could or could not happen until you try it."

"Think about your Pokémon for cripes sake!" Max cried, "None of them could ever dream to stand up to Red even in a million years!"

"Oi, take that back! My Pokémon are the strongest in the world~!" Ash demanded before turning to his longtime partner and friend, "What do you say Pikachu? Do you think we should go after the title of the World's Greatest Pokemon Master?"

"Pika~!" Pikachu nodded, eyes alight with a flame of confidence.

"It's settled then~!" Ash beamed.

"What's settled!" Everyone shouted.

"Ash…" Misty whispered, shocking everyone, "What did you mean by that you'd be a fool for leaving those two?"

"Huh?" Ash blinked before rubbing the back of his head, "Well…Because I may never get another chance to have my own family."

"What are you talking about?" Misty suddenly snapped, causing Ash, Brock, Tracy, and Pikachu to all flinch, "Of course you'll have another chance! You're still young and you haven't even started dating yet! When you get married, that'll be your chance to-"

"No…No it won't," Ash growled, interrupting her rant.

"Wh-What are you talking about?" Misty asked, beautiful cerulean blue eyes wide, "I don't understand…What are you hiding from me, Ash Ketchum!"

Ash sighed before running a hand through his wild jet black hair, "I can't have my own kids, Mist…I'm completely sterile so even if I do marry the woman I love, we could never have our own family…and she'll never want to be with me because having kids is also one of her biggest dreams…"

"…D-Does…Does she know about this?" Misty asked, suddenly nervous.

"Yeah," Ash reluctantly nodded.

'It's not a total lie,' Ash thought, 'Since she is the woman I love, she does know now…'

'Oh god…I knew that he had always loved somebody else but to think that he had confessed and that she rejected him for such a petty reason…' Misty thought, 'I mean, I want a family too but I would never leave this wonderful guy for something so small. After all there is adopt…tion.'

"I see," Misty smiled weakly, "Then I agree with you, Mr. Pokemon Master~!"

"Huh?" everyone blinked.

"You would be a fool to pass this up," Misty smirked as she walked over to the bed, "Well, since you'll be in Pallet for a while, make sure to come and visit me in Cerulean City as often as you can! I'm going to spoil these kids even more than their grandmother~!"

"Oi! One person trying to spoil them is enough!" Ash snapped, "What are you planning to do to my kids!"

"I'm going to corrupt them and make them water Pokémon trainers!" Misty teased.

While the two best friends suddenly started bickering, the rest could be seen on the ground holding their heads.

'What the crud? Misty just found out that Ash couldn't have kids and she _**didn't**_ go on a murderous rampage!?' Brock shouted in his mind, 'I mean, Misty's dream of having a family is something that she would do anything for just like Ash…'

"Eh? Those are good names!" Misty stomped her foot.

"If I'm going to be their father, I'm going to name them!" Ash retorted, turning to Nurse Joy, "Sorry to bother you so much but you wouldn't have some diapers, would you?"

"Eh? Oh, n-no," Nurse Joy said, shaking her head.

"Crud…Pikachu, go and get my backpack," Ash ordered.

"Pika!" Pikachu saluted before dashing off.

"What, did your mom pack you diapers just in case too?" Misty gaped.

"No but I wouldn't doubt it," Ash sweat dropped, "She just might start too…"

"yeah…" Misty and Brock agreed.

"Then what are you going to do?" Nurse Joy asked.

"I'm going to turn one or two of my old shirts into makeshift ones, at least for tonight," Ash stated.

"Why not just let them keep wearing the ones they have on?" Dawn asked.

"They were sitting in the snow before Ash picked them up," Max sighed, "With those thin blankets, the diapers that they have on right now are probably wet. The fact that they aren't crying is a miracle."

"Agreed," Tracy and Drew nodded.

"Thankfully, since tomorrow is the twenty-fourth, a few stores should still be open so we'll go and stock up," Ash stated as Pikachu reappeared.

"Sounds good…So I take it that you're going to head back to Pallet after Christmas?" Brock asked.

"Yeah," Ash nodded, setting to work, "While I would like to keep going, I don't think that's such a good idea. Especially considering that we're due for a Team Rocket attack any day now."

"True," everyone but the confused nurse nodded.

"I can't believe that they changed their motto again…" Misty sighed.

"I can't believe me that they've chased me for ten years…" Ash sighed, finishing one make-shift diaper, "There. Now, let's hope that they didn't actually need to be changed."

"Oh, I can't wait to see you have to actually change their diapers," Misty giggled evilly.

"Yeah, yeah," Ash scoffed as he set to work.

"…do we even know if they are boys or girls?" Max asked, "Because I know that I couldn't tell."

"Well, we'll find out now, won't we?" Ash smiled as he slowly pulled off the wet diaper from the babe with the blue streak through its bangs and cinnamon colored eyes, "Well, this one is a beautiful little girl."

"Do you think both are?" Dawn asked.

"Oooh, now I can't wait for her to grow up and see how Ash handles explaining her first period," Misty snickered.

"I'm more interested in how he'll react when she starts dating," Brock joined in.

"Easy," Ash smirked, "She won't date until she's at least thirty."

"Oh gawd, he's already going full daddy mode on us~!" May squealed.

"I kind of hope that it isn't both girls…" Tracy whimpered.

"Yeah, cause I don't know how Ash would handle all the squealing," Drew smirked.

"What was that?" May questioned.

"Nothing," Drew gulped.

"Well, it looks like I'll have some help in protecting her from boys," Ash smirked as he pulled the wet diaper from the babe with the red streak and cerulean blue eyes, "They're brother and sister."

"I think I'll be coming to bug you a whole lot, Ashy boy," Misty smirked, "Because I have a feeling that with these two, your life is never going to be boring again."

"So what are you going to name them?" Nurse Joy asked, sending Chansey to throw away the remains of the old diapers.

"Hm…" Ash sounded.

"I still think that you should name your daughter Jemma," Misty pouted.

"No," Ash stated, dragging out the syllable as he thought, "I want them to have unique names…"

"Unique? Like what?" Dawn asked.

Snapping his fingers, Ash turned and smirked at everyone, "Fintan and Rosemary~!"

"…Fintan," May started.

"And Rosemary?" Max finished.

"Yeah, Fintan means white fire and Rosemary means mist of the sea," Ash said, brushing the girl's bangs to the side of her forehead.

Misty sighed before placing her hand on his shoulder, "Those are good names, Ash. I'm sure that they'll love them when they get older."

Ash just beamed back at her, ignoring the single tear that lingered in the corner of his eye.

"Just don't be surprise when we start calling them Finny and Rose…Ashton," Misty snickered, quickly retreating behind Brock.

"Oi!" Ash snapped, immediately going after the redhead with a fierce blush on his face, "I told you not to call me that!"

"Ashton?" Dawn repeated.

"That's Ash's given name," Tracy sighed, "His full name is Ashton Satoshi Ketchum."

"Tracy!" Ash snapped, still trying to get at Misty who kept running around Brock.

"Sorry~!" Tracy laughed.

"I think Brock is getting dizzy," Max snickered.

"Yeah but I think that it's better for them to get their energy out now instead of keeping us up," May giggled.

"True," Drew nodded.

Dawn just looked between everyone before shrugging. Despite everything that had happened, they were acting as if nothing major had just happened. Sighing, she smiled at how Misty started to use Brock literally as a human shield. Maybe, just maybe, she could eventually get used to their craziness.

* * *

_**Mizu: *chuckles evilly* So the first real cross between the game, manga, and anime has arrived. Oh, I think you guys are all going to love what I've planned~! It's going to be so wonderful~!**_

_**Ash: *sighs* At least you allowed me to still be a dad…**_

_**Mizu: Don't worry, Ash. Your life is only going to get more complicated~!**_

_**Ash: Wait…What!?**_

_**Mizu: Remember that I love all reviews and suggestions~! Ciao for now~!**_

_**Pikachu: Pika?**_


	3. Unable to Understand these Fools

_**Mizu: Okay, I'm a little iffy on this chapter but if all like it then yay~! Disclaimer time: Mizu no owns anything to do with Pokémon the anime series, the games, or the manga. If she did, then she wouldn't be sitting at her laptop wishing for food other than ramen (which is still a blessing and delicious but it gets old…) Also, I would like to apologize for the length it took for me to get this out...between a laptop that decided to stop working and then my internet going out for like a month, it's been pretty hectic...**_

_**One last thing that I would like to note: I do not know how the actual adoption process works and decided that I would just make up something that seemed to work. If it is horribly wrong or does not make any sense, please do tell me.**_

* * *

_**The Rarest Love: Chapter Three- Unable to Understand the Fools of the World…**_

_"The happiest people seem to be those who have no particular reason for being so except that they are so." ~William Ralph Inge_

* * *

Over the next few days, everyone got a front row seat in witnessing just how amazing of a father Ash was. The first morning after Fintan and Rosemary joined their family, Ash woke up before everyone else, left his Pokémon to guard the babes, and went to buy all the supplies he would need until he got back to Pallet Town. Included were diapers, formula, thick blankets, clothes, bottles, a few toys, a diaper bag, and a double stroller for when they were in towns. This meant that until they reached the next town that they would be carrying the babes but no one really had any problem with that.

It was a shock for everyone when they walked out of their rooms to see Ash already down stairs feeding his new children. It was actually pretty funny for Brock and Tracy when Misty came out and all but squealed at the sight. For the rest of the day, the group of friends fussed over the babies, all worries and doubts gone. All their Pokémon took turns trying to make them giggle, Pikachu always beating the rest. Whenever Ash needed a break, somebody was always there to step in. The whole day was filled with laughter as the entire group fell more and more in love with Finny and Rose.

It was towards the end the day that Officer Jenny showed up at the request of Nurse Joy. At first, the law woman was extremely skeptical about letting somebody adopt the babes so soon but once she saw how much love they were already being surrounded with, she couldn't bring herself to even think about separating them.

"I did manage to track down the hospital that these two were born at," Jenny said, smiling at the two asleep in their new father's arms.

"Really?" Misty asked.

Jenny just nodded, "They were born on October 28th to a Emily Racket and Jason Bollier. We're still trying to track those two down but seeing as they left these two so recklessly it's safe to say that even if they wanted them back, they would not be seen fit to raise them in any court."

"So, no matter what, I get to keep Finny and Rose?" Ash asked.

"Most definitely," Jenny smiled, "I'll have two adoption forms sent over for you to fill out so that you can become their legal guardian. But until we find their original parents and make sure that they are willing to hand over their parental rights, you'll just be their foster father. It shouldn't take too long though."

"That's fine," Ash nodded, attention returning to his new children, "Did they name them?"

Jenny shook her head, "They chose not to. No paperwork for the babies' names have been submitted so when we track them down and you get full legal guardianship, you can name them just like you already have."

"That's great to hear," Misty beamed, taking Finny from Ash, "Did you hear that little guy~? You and your sister are going to be Ketchum's soon~!"

Suddenly, two teenagers ran into the Pokemon Center, carrying an injured Glameow. One was a cute girl with long dark brown hair pulled up into a high ponytail and dark blue eyes that had a few tears in them. The other was a boy with the dark maroon colored hair that matched his maroon colored eyes that seemed to be darting around quickly. While they quickly talked to Nurse Joy, Officer Jenny started to freak out, scaring everyone there.

"I-It's you!" Officer Jenny shouted, pointing at the two, "Emily Racket and Jason Bollier!"

The two blinked before setting eyes on Ash, "Ah! It's the crazy Mankey Man!"

"Mankey Man?" Ash repeated with an eye twitch as several of his friends snickered, "Officer Jenny, are you sure that it's them?"

"Positive! I made sure to memorize their pictures when we got them before I came over here," Jenny explained.

"I see," Ash sighed, handing Rose to Brock, "You're Rose and Finny's biological parents."

"Rose…" Emily repeated.

"and Finny?" Jason finished.

"The two babes that you left at the doors last night when you ran away," Ash stated, eyes cold as he looked them over while he walked up to them, "…How old are you two?"

"S-Sixteen…" Emily whimpered.

"S-Seventeen…" Jason gulped.

"I see. Don't you think that you are too young to be engaging in such activities, especially when you definitely aren't prepared to face the consequences?" Ash questioned, chocolate eyes boring into their souls.

"I-It was a mistake!" Jason snapped, suddenly angry that he was being scolded by a man that looked to be the same age as him.

Ash's eyes widened before narrowing into a dark glare, "A…mistake!?"

The parents took a quick step back as the trainer's shoulders shook in anger.

"You know something? I really hate punks like you that think you can do anything you want and then when something goes wrong, if you just say that it was a mistake or that you didn't mean to that you'll be forgiven," Ash growled, gripping the counter to the point that it broke out beneath his fingers, "Let me tell you something, brats. The world doesn't work like that and if you keep that mindset, you'll find yourselves in a situation that you can't dump at somebody else's door."

"W-What…What's the big deal?" Jason scoffed after regaining his composure, "You found them, didn't you? It's not like Emily or I really want to be parents anyway so-"

"What would you have done if I _**hadn't **_seen you last night!?" Ash shouted, scaring everyone in the room, "They didn't even have any clothes on their bodies! The only thing that was protecting them from the cold were thin blankets and those wouldn't protect them all night! They would have died before someone could save them!"

"Wh-What?" Emily gasped, "W-We thought that they would start crying and someone would hear them…"

"There would still be no guarantee that someone would have found them!" Ash snapped, so tempted to have Pikachu shock some sense into them, "Even if someone did, they would have been so cold that their lives would be in danger anyway!"

"Wh-What do you want us to say!" Jason snapped back, ignoring the way that all of Ash's friends were motioning him to keep quiet, "What would a brat like you know about having kids anyway!"

Immediately after the words left the boy's mouth, all of Ash's friends dove to restrain him from doing something stupid.

"B-Brat…I'm twenty fucking years old!" Ash shouted at the two as Brock and Tracy tried desperately to keep them separated, "And unlike you, I have always dreamed of being a father that loved every single one of his children! But, also unlike you, I can't have my own children! I would have loved to have been given the blessing you two had but that's not how it was meant to be!"

The two teenagers just stared in fear and awe at the fuming man.

"Dammit," Ash cursed, not caring who heard, "Why did you even care for them for two months if you were just going to give them up? What? Did you want to try it out and then found out it was too hard so you just gave up? And what's with not telling your parents about this? Most parents will be upset, yes, but they will still love you and love your children just as much…"

"…You're right, sir…" Emily whimpered, tears in her eyes, "We thought that we would be able to take care of them but found out that it was a lot harder than we first thought. Then our parents, who are good friends with each other, decided to meet up with us in the next town…W-We just didn't want to get in trouble…"

"…" Ash sighed, "…You're the one that wrote the note, right?"

"Yes," the mother nodded, "Sir…It's not that I don't love them. It's just that I don't think that we could ever provide them with the home that they were meant to have…"

Ash let out a heavy sigh before his friends released him, "You're probably right on that…Look, you need to sign over your parental rights for Finny and Rose."

"Huh?" Emily blinked.

"I told you that I couldn't have my own kids, right?" Ash sighed yet again, running a hand through his hair, "What kind of fool would I be if I didn't jump on the chance to have a family?"

The parents' eyes widened before they nodded.

"You do realize that you'll never see them again, right?" Ash asked, leaning over the couch to stare at Finny in Misty's arms, "If you do give them up, you can never say that you are their parents. You won't get to watch them take their first steps. They won't say their first words to you. You understand what you're doing, right?"

"Yes," Emily said, completely serious, "We understand all of that and know that this is the best thing for them."

"Heh," Ash sounded, back to the parents, "Have Officer Jenny help you fill out your part of the paper work. That fine with you, Jenny?"

"H-Huh? Oh, right," Jenny nodded.

"By the way, your Glameow is looking just fine now," Ash chuckled.

"Huh?" everyone blinked before staring at the Pokemon happily licking its paws.

"You guys just wanted to make sure that somebody had actually found them, right?" Ash stated before hopping over the couch, "Don't worry. I might be a crazy Mankey Man, but I wouldn't have just left them there all night."

Silence reigned over the group while Ash took back Rose from Dawn and began playing with her. Slowly, tears slid out of the mother's eyes as she watched the strange man play with the babes she brought into the world. Turning away, she led her partner away to fill out the paperwork so that the man that would love their children more than they ever could would have what was rightfully his.

* * *

After the excitement from the first day of having Finny and Rose in the group, Ash decided to add even more on top of it all by calling his mother. He smirked to everyone as he pulled Misty with him to help him break the news to her. At first, he decided to be extremely mischievous. In hindsight, it would have been pretty funny if it hadn't freaked everyone else out.

His plan to break the news to his mother was to have Misty sit on his lap holding Finny while he wrapped one arm around her waist and the other held Rose close to him. He explained it to Misty as _"Mom was so heartbroken when she found out that I couldn't have kids, I just want to see her smile. So I want to tell her it was all just a joke to hide that fact that I became a dad. And before you ask why you, she's always messing with us and saying that we would be a cute couple. So don't you think that this would be a complete shock for her?"_

The plan itself stunned everyone. The fact that Misty agreed with a mischievous smirk on her face was what freaked them out. So after secretly snapping a few pictures of they were seated, Brock did the honor of calling Mrs. Ketchum.

"Hello~! Ketchum residence~!" Mrs. Ketchum beamed before appearing on the screen, "A-Ash…?"

"Hey mom~!" Ash beamed, he and Misty desperately trying to hold back their laughter.

"Wh-What?" the older woman gaped, "What's going on here?"

"We just wanted to call and tell you that you're a grandmother, Mrs. Ketchum~!" Misty smiled happily as Finny giggled.

"H-Huh?" Delia blinked, "B-But I thought…"

"Yeah…I decided that it would be better for you to think that something was wrong so that you wouldn't get mad when you found out the truth~!" Ash laughed.

"S-So y-you and M-Misty…Oh sweetheart~! That's wonderful~!" Delia gushed, clapping her hands together, "I can't believe that you-"

Ash couldn't take it anymore before he busted out in laughter, Misty following soon after. The mother just blinked in confusion while the two caught their breath. Allowing Misty to get up and take the babes over to sit on the couch, Ash just smiled weakly at his mother.

"S-Sorry…I just really wanted to see you smile before I told you anything," Ash happily sighed.

"So you're not," Delia started to ask.

"Nope," Ash shook his head, "But you are a grandmother. Those two kids you just saw are the two that I just adopted."

The silence that followed worried everyone until, "Wah!? Wh-Why are you crying, Mom?!"

"I-I'm just so happy! My little baby boy has grown up so much…I still remember when I was changing your diapers like it was yesterday and now you're going to be changing them for your kids! Time flies so fast!" Delia wailed as tears of happiness.

"If you're so happy, why are you crying!" Ash whined.

"I-Is one a boy?" Delia asked, trying to reign in her tears.

"Yep," Ash sighed, relieved to see her tears drying, "One boy and one girl."

"What did you name them?" Delia asked, a warm smile on her face.

"The girl's name is Rosemary and the boy is Fintan," Ash said, replicating the smile.

"That's my boy~! Following the same tradition your father did~!" Delia beamed.

"Hmph. I'm not following it because he did," Ash pouted, "It's the family tradition to name the eldest son with something to do with fire, right? Why break tradition for such a petty reason?"

'Actually, I totally forgot about tradition when I named them. I just went through all the names I had ever thought of for my kids and picked two that I liked…' Ash thought to himself.

Delia just sighed before giving her son a small smile, "Right. In any case, your father will be happy to hear this."

"Huh? Why?" Ash asked.

"I called him after I found out about your problem and he was so panicked that he nearly flew all the way to Sinnoh to find you," Delia weakly laughed, "Don't worry though. I stopped him before he could…I know that you'd rather not actually see him."

Ash let out a heavy sigh, "…Thanks mom…"

"Ash…you know that your father worries about you, right?" Delia asked.

"Yeah," Ash sighed, all of his friends watching cautiously, "And before you say it, I already know that the guy loves me as his son. That means a lot to me because if I ever really needed him, he'd probably be there. But at the same time you have to understand that it won't ever make up for what he couldn't do when I was growing up…"

"Ash…" Misty whispered from the couch.

"I mean, the man was my hero just like every other father is to their kids but he was never around," Ash said, running his hands over his face, "I waited so long, just waiting for him to come back and show me all the cool things that only a dad could show. Then when Gary's folks died, I became so afraid that that's what happened to Dad…when Gary started getting meaner, new fears surfaced that I had never thought about…Why hadn't my dad been around? Gary's occasionally went off on his journey when he was on vacation from work but my Dad was always on his journey and never came home…When I honestly started thinking about this, the only answer that I ever found was that he didn't love me the way I loved him…"

"That's not true!" Delia interrupted.

"Yeah, I know that, Mom," Ash weakly chuckled, leaning back the chair, "But when I was really little, that's the only conclusion I could ever come up with. All the other kids who had parents that went on occasional journeys never had to go so long without seeing them. Heck, my dad didn't even see me for the first time until I was four…What else could I have thought back then?

"Then, whenever he was home, he always said the weirdest things…" Ash thought aloud, "I never understood them back then and I don't really remember them but I do remember thinking that Dad sure was strange…Man, why am I even complaining about all of this? There are so many people that grew up with harder circumstances. I just need to suck it up."

"…You really have grown up, Ash…" Delia sighed happily, "You have no idea how much it relieves me to see just how great of a man you've grown up to be."

"Huh?" Ash blinked.

"Nothing sweetie," Delia giggled, "So, when should I expect you home next~?"

"Probably within the next week or so," Ash stated, scratching his cheek, "It would be sooner but I rather not fly on Charizard with the kids so I'll have to take an actual plane home."

"You're coming home now?" Delia blinked.

"Well yeah," Ash smiled, "I can't really carry around two babies while constantly battling, right?"

"So you're…" Delia started to say.

"Coming home to train and raise these two before going off to challenge Red," Ash said confidently, ignoring the crashes behind him.

"Y-You're still on that!" May snapped.

"You will fail! No bloody question about it!" Max cried.

"Blah blah blah," Ash smirked, "I'm going to do it and prove you all wrong~!"

Delia just laughed, "I'm sure you will, Ash. Well, I better go start planning what to make when you come home~!"

"Really!?" Ash asked, eyes seeming to sparkle.

"Mmhm~!" Delia giggled, "See you when you get home sweetie~!"

"Bye~!" Ash laughed before turning off the videophone and leaping out of his chair, "Woohoo! Mom's feast is going to be waiting for me~!"

"He's happy," Dawn smiled.

"That's Ash for you. A real simple kind of a guy," Misty sighed before laughing, "All it takes to keep him happy is food, Pokémon, and more food~!"

"I heard that Mist~!" Ash fake snapped, a wide grin on his face.

"So what if you did, eh Mr. Pokemon Master?" Misty chuckled, handing Finny and Rose to someone else, "What are you going to do about it?"

"This!" Ash laughed, diving for his best friend, intent on starting a tickle fight.

Everyone else just laughed as they watched the two best friends chase each other around the lobby. From how Ash was acting, they all knew he was up to something. Just what it was, no one could say exactly but they did know one thing. Whatever it was that Ash was planning had to do something with Misty. For the rest, all they could do was dream.

* * *

The next couple of days were slow compared to the first. They had all agreed not to get anything for each other for Christmas seeing as most didn't have the money to spare so Christmas day was spent outside hanging out with each other. The nights were filled with them all sitting next to the lobby's fireplace retelling tales of different legs of their journeys. When their faces were too sore to laugh anymore, they would talk about how everyone was getting home. Of course, Ash suggested that they all travel together for as long as they could. Seeing as most had come from a different country, they would all fly together and then separate at their desired place.

Dawn would of course be the first to go seeing as she actually lived in Sinnoh. Since her home town wasn't too far from where they actually were, she'd go with them all to the airport before heading home. Next were May, Max, and Drew who were headed back to Hoenn to say visit their families. Well, Drew had another motive that all the guys knew but he wasn't going to say it in front of May. Finally, the rest would all travel back to Viridian City together before splitting off to go to their respective homes.

While they were all excited to return home after so long of being on the road, none of them were ready to say goodbye. For some this would be the first time. Others it had become a regular event. Even still, no one wanted their time together to end. The only condolence that was given was the promise to that they would all see each other again.

Finally, they day to set off to the next town arrived. It would be a two day walk minimum before they had to fight to get plane tickets. Because rushing would gain them nothing, the group of friends decided to take final leg of their trip together at a leisurely pace. They often stopped to admire the frozen scenery around them or to play with Rose and Finny. Seeing as it was still fairly cold out, Ash made sure to keep the twins nicely covered so that they wouldn't catch anything. Most of the time, he and Misty were the ones carrying the twins but occasionally, the others would give them a break to rest their arms.

Due to all of their breaks and the fact that they camped out at night in the few caves that were close to the path, their trip to the next town was taking much longer than it normally would have. Going on to the fourth day on their way to the next town, everyone had one thing on their mind.

"Listen, is that a voice I hear?" a familiar and unwelcome female's voice sounded.

"It's speaking to me loud and clear," followed the equally familiar and unwelcome male's voice.

"There they are," Misty sighed as the rest just shook their heads.

"I was almost worried because they hadn't attacked us for a while…" Tracy laughed nervously.

"yeah," the rest nodded.

"On the wind!" a woman with long purplish maroon hair exclaimed, jumping out of her hiding place.

"Past the Stars!" a man with chin length blue hair added, taking his spot next to her.

"In your ears!" a feline Pokémon exclaimed, landing in the middle of the two.

"Bringing chaos at a breakneck pace," the woman beamed.

"Dashing hope, putting fear in its place," the man added once again.

"A rose by any other name is just as sweet," the woman said melodramatically.

"When everything's worse, our work is complete," the man smirked.

"Jessie," the woman smirked.

"And it's James!" the man said, pulling a red rose out of no where.

"And Meowth, now dat's a name!" the cat Pokémon boasted.

"Putting the do-gooders in their place…" Jessie chuckled evilly.

"We're Team Rocket…" James chuckled.

"…in your face!" all three finished, striking a pose.

"Wobbuffet!" a blue blob Pokémon exclaimed as it popped out of its poke ball.

Misty sighed as May took Finny from her, "I really think that I miss their original motto."

"I know what you mean, Mist," Ash nodded as he handed Rose to Tracy, "Sure I thought it was annoying but these are a million times worse…"

"What are you grumbling about over there, twerps?" Jessie fumed.

"Oh, just about how your first motto was the best," the two shrugged.

"First motto?" James blinked.

"You know, 'Prepare for trouble,'" Misty mocked, instantly changing into a mock Jessie outfit.

"And make it double," Ash joined in, dressed as James.

"To protect the world from devastation!" Misty exclaimed, pose just as Jessie would have.

"To unite all peoples within our nation," Ash added, pulling out a rose like James.

"To denounce the evils of truth and love," Misty said almost romantically.

"To extend our reach to the stars above~!" Ash smirked deviously.

"Misty," Misty smirked cutely, happy to replace Jessie's name with hers.

"Ash," Ash said, imitating James's voice the best he could.

"Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!" Misty exclaimed, posing as a random giant R appeared behind the two.

"Surrender now or prepare to fight, fight, fight!" Ash finished, striking a pose as well.

"Pi Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted, jumping up in front of them.

"Ah, those were the days," Misty laughed, somehow instantly returning to her original clothing.

"Such a nostalgic feeling this is," Ash chuckled, his clothes also instantly changing back.

"Did they really used to say that?" Dawn asked.

"Yep," the others all nodded.

"I can't tell if they're making fun of us or not," James blinked.

"Never mind all that!" Meowth snapped, pointing its paw at the group, "We're here to steal those Pokémon of yours!"

"Well, gotta give you points for persistence," Ash sighed, pulling out a poke ball, "But you should know by now that you'll never get any Pokémon of ours."

"That's where you're wrong, twerp~!" Jessie laughed as the group jumped back into the basket of a Meowth hot air balloon.

"Huh? Are they retreating already?" Misty blinked, holding one of her own poke balls as well.

Two screams behind the two startled them causing them to quickly turn around. Ash's eyes widened as he watched in seemingly slow motion as James's Carnivine appeared behind May and Tracy. Before he could do anything, the Pokémon's vines deftly snatched his kids from the safety of his friends' arms before rushing towards the hot air balloon. Not thinking, Ash took off for the Pokémon, paternal instincts kicking in enough that his common sense was nearly completely overridden. Said common sense was the only thing that was kept him from ordering Pikachu to Volt Tackle the grass Pokémon.

In the hot air balloon, Jessie and Meowth could be seen freaking out while James was screaming for his beloved Pokémon to hurry. Just before the Pokémon could make it to the hot air balloon, Ash managed to grab a hold of it. As Carnivine turned to use a quick Bullet Seed attack, it froze as the raging eyes of the young man seemed pierce into its very being.

"Give. Them. **BACK!**" Glaring at the poor grass Pokémon enough to make it forever scared of the trainer, Ash reached for his children. Then, out of the corner of his eye, a blur of black raced for him. Turning to face it, the trainer was knocked back into a tree as Jessie's Seviper used its Poison Tail to free its comrade and friend. Both of the Rocket Pokémon quickly made it to the hot air balloon before any of the twerps could come after them.

As Ash's body collided with the tree, he was forced to spit up some blood. His friends rushed to him as Team Rocket's balloon lifted off the ground. They gasped as they took in the sight. The trainer's black sweater that had been torn through revealed the diagonal slash wound starting from just above his right hip and ending at his left shoulder. The edges of the wound were slowly turning purple, an evident sign that Seviper's poison had been transferred into his body.

Before anyone of their friends could stop him, Ash had pulled out the poke ball of his beloved bird Pokémon.

"Star~!" the Pokémon exclaimed as it was freed from the poke ball.

"Staraptor! G-Go after Team Rocket! Th-They have Rose and Finny!" Ash ordered, gritting his teeth in pain.

"Star! Star~!" Staraptor shouted before quickly going after the balloon.

"Ash, we need to get you to a hospital!" Brock exclaimed, quickly looking over his friend's condition.

"N-no," Ash growled out, voice shaking.

"What do you mean no!?" Dawn snapped, "You've been poisoned!"

"I don't care!" Ash shouted, forcing himself to his feet, "I-I've got to save them…"

"But you're hurt!" Dawn tried to argue before May placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Ash, you stay here and let Brock treat you," Misty stated, starting off in the direction that Staraptor took off in, "Drew, Tracy, and I will go after them. Catch up after you've been bandaged."

Ash looked like he was going to argue but caved in. He knew he wasn't in the condition to go anywhere let alone save anyone.

"Then hurry up and go," Ash managed to get up before collapsing to his knees, "Please…just save them."

* * *

_**Mizu: Woot~! First real cliffhanger~! I was really tempted to cut this earlier in the chapter but I think it's better here~!**_

_**Ash: …Now I know what you meant by my life was only going to get more complicated. **_

_**Mizu: It actually gets a whole lot worse, Ashy~! Remember that I love all reviews and suggestions~! Ciao for now.**_

_**Ash: Pikachu…Is it possible to use Thunderbolt on the author?**_

_**Mizu: Eeep!**_


	4. Accidental Run Ins

_**Mizu: Onto the next chapter~! The chase begins while Ash tries to quickly recover! Will Misty and the others manage to save Finny and Rose? Well, what are you all still reading my author notes for? Go and read the chapter to find out! Disclaimer time: I don't own anything to do with any of the Pokémon series. If I did, I think I would have let Ash and Pikachu have their retirement years ago.**_

* * *

_**The Rarest Love: Chapter Four- Accidental Run ins!**_

"_If you think sunshine brings you happiness, then you haven't danced in the rain." –Unknown_

* * *

"Then hurry up and go," Ash managed to get up before collapsing to his knees, "Please…just save them."

"Don't worry, we will," Misty said, the three running off after the kidnappers.

"May get into my bag and pull out as many rolls of gauze you can find as well as some Antidote," Brock ordered as he forced Ash to sit down on the frozen ground, "Sometimes, I really hate your stubborn side, you know?"

"S-Sorry," Ash weakly chuckled, tears slowly rolling out of his eyes.

Seeing them, Brock just sighed, "Don't worry. You know Misty. She won't let anything happen to those kids, no matter what she has to do to keep them safe."

"I know…that's what I'm afraid of," Ash whimpered, more tears falling, "In any way that this all goes down, someone that I love is going to be hurt."

"Why did Team Rocket kidnap Finny and Rose anyway?" Dawn asked, terrified for the babies.

"Well, we had them bundled up pretty well, they probably that we were carrying two baby Pokémon," Max deduced, "After all, not many people will think that we were carrying two babies and no one would be able to see that unless they were close enough to see their faces."

"Wh-What do you think will happen when they find out that what they stole was actually two babies?" Dawn questioned.

"Quiet down you two!" Ash snapped as Brock helped him out his sweater, "Team Rocket may be evil, but those three are the black sheep of the group. They won't do anything to Finny and Rose. Hopefully, if they catch on quick enough, they'll just give up and hand them back over to Misty and the others."

"Then…Why did you go crazy a minute ago?" Dawn asked.

"One, those are my kids. Like hell I'm going to sit back and along someone take them from me," Ash growled out as May finally returned to his side with an armful of gauze, "And two, those three are even more dense than I am. They probably won't realize that they're carrying to kids until they start crying."

"T-True," the rest agreed.

"May, can you grab some disinfectant too?" Brock asked, struggling to undo the cap on the antidote spray bottle.

"Hey…Where's Pikachu?" Max suddenly asked.

"Huh!?" everyone but Ash gasped.

"H-He went with Misty," Ash groaned.

"How did he sneak away like that?" Dawn questioned.

Ash weakly chuckled, "He's just that good."

"Here you go, Brock," May said softly as she returned once again with the disinfectant.

"Thanks," Brock said, finally getting the top off.

"Wait, why are you taking off the top?" Dawn asked.

"Pokémon antidote works just as well on humans but you have to use much more to have the same results," Brock explained, "The spray top gets in the way then."

"Why is that?" Max asked.

"A Pokémon's immune system is much stronger than any human's. They were used to fight off the ailments that they would receive from fighting. All healing medicines are made to simply speed up the process," Brock said, pouring about half the bottle over Ash's wound.

"_**Gah!**_" Ash screamed out in pain, "A little warning would have been nice!"

"Sorry," Brock apologized, handing the bottle to Ash, "Drink."

"Wait, why does he have to drink it now?" May asked.

"I already said that the antidote has to be taken in much larger quantities for humans," Brock sighed, starting to prepare the disinfectant, "The amount I spread on the wound is going to work hard to neutralize the poison there but just in case, Ash needs to get the antidote into his blood stream so that it can neutralize any poison that manages to slip by."

"Bleh!" Ash gagged after chugging the rest of the bottle, "Why does everything that is supposed to be good for you taste so bad?"

"Do you always have to use a full bottle?" Max asked.

"No but seeing as soon as I get him bandaged up he'll be racing off after the others, it's a good thing he did," Brock sighed, looking at Ash, "Okay, here's your warning. This is going to sting like a Mankey's Screech."

"Okay, tha-_**ANKS! YOWOUCH!**_" Ash screamed as Brock quickly set to work by pouring disinfectant directly onto the wound, "Brock you damn jerk!"

"What? I warned you that time," Brock said as he quickly disinfected the wound.

"Warned me my…" Ash grumbled, eyes slowly becoming distant.

"Stop worrying. You said it yourself. Jessie, James, and Meowth might work for Team Rocket but they won't do anything to hurt Rose and Finny. The others will have caught up to them by now so just wait until I finish getting you bandaged before you go racing off," Brock said, not even looking at his friend as he slowly began to wrap the gauze around his torso.

"You're right," Ash sighed, allowing his friend to continue in silence.

After roughly fifteen minutes of complete silence, Brock finished up by tying off the gauze at the trainer's shoulder, "There. You're all bandaged."

"Thanks Brock," Ash groaned as he stood up, "May, call our Glaceon and Dawn, you call out Togekiss."

"Okay," the two girls nodded before doing so.

"Togekiss~!"

"Gla~!"

"Now what, Ash?" Dawn asked.

"Send Togekiss up to the sky to scout for Staraptor. We'll use Glaceon's nose to track them down here," Ash said, shrugging on the remains of his sweater before heading off in the direction that the others went earlier.

"You heard him," May said to Glaceon, "Just focus on Drew's scent, okay?"

"Gla!" Glaceon nodded before rushing off in front of Ash.

"Do your best Togekiss!" Dawn said before sending it off.

"Let's go," Ash ordered before racing off behind Glaceon.

* * *

Meanwhile, the others had yet to force Team Rocket out of the sky. The snow on the ground slowed the trainers down while James's Carnivine's bullet seed kept all their flying Pokémon at bay.

"The twerps sure are persistant," Jessie stated, staring down at the trainers that were chasing after them on foot.

"But I have to worry why their Pokémon haven't attacked us yet," James pointed out, "Normally by now, one of their Pokémon would have burst the balloon."

"You're right," Jessie agreed, both trying to think up the reason for why, "What do you think Meowth?"

"I dunno, but da twerps' Pokémon keep saying some weird stuff," Meowth stated.

"Weird how?" James asked.

"Well, da twerp's never nicknamed his Pokémon, right?" Meowth asked.

"Yeah, why?" Jessie nodded.

"Well dose guys all keep yelling at us to give dem back Finny and Rose," Meowth said, staring at the group of flying Pokémon trying to get close to them.

"Finny and Rose?" James repeated, staring at the Pokémon carrier that held the two bundles of supposed baby Pokémon.

"Maybe the kid just got bored," Jessie sighed.

"I doubt it," James said, "The twerp doesn't change unless he has to. I highly doubt that something would make him change start nicknaming his Pokémon."

"Um…guys?" Meowth whimpered.

"What?" Jessie sighed.

"I think dat dose guys are tired of just chasing us," Meowth gulped as Staraptor dove straight towards them.

"Star Staraptor!" the bird Pokémon yelled as it attack the Carnivine with its Close Combat attack.

"Carnivine!" James shrieked.

"Give his babies back?" Meowth translated in confusion.

"Star! Star Star Staraptor!" Staraptor screeched behind it as it kept using the damaging attack.

"I-Incoming Flygon from da left!" Meowth screamed, diving down to cover the carrier.

"Fly!" the dragon Pokémon shouted as he dove with its front paws straight out in front of it, hoping to save the babes in one swoop.

"Star!" Staraptor shouted when a blur of black jumped at Flygon.

"Gon?" Flygon blinked just before Seviper's Poison Tail sent it flying.

"Star!" Staraptor yelled before Carnivine sent it flying back into Drew's Butterfree.

"Freee!" the bug Pokémon yelled out in shock and pain.

"Wh-What the crud is up with these Pokémon!" Jessie gaped, "Why aren't they all attacking us? You're right, James, this is weird."

Meowth meanwhile was distracted by how Staraptor was acting. After making sure that Flygon was save, the Pokémon sent all of the others to a lower altitude. Confused, the feline Pokémon strained its ears to hear what they were saying.

"Star star…" Staraptor said in a remorseful tone before suddenly flying up higher than the balloon.

"Forgive me, Ash?" Meowth repeated, turning to his partners, "Da flyers are up to something."

"Like what?" Jessie asked, looking around for the Pokémon, "What, did they give up?"

"N-No," James stuttered, eyes looked on the bird Pokémon above them that was suddenly diving towards it surrounded by what seemed like flames, "I-It's going to use Brave Bird on us!"

"What?" Jessie gasped.

"What da crud does it dink it's doing?" Meowth snapped, "Dat move will hurt it too!"

"More importantly, what are we going to do!" Jessie snapped, "We need to stop it before-"

"Star!" the bird Pokémon's call sounded throughout the area as it spread its wings, the flames turning to a beautiful blue aura that surrounded it's entire body, just before its body ripped the balloon all the way through.

"Aaaahhh!" the three screamed as they suddenly began to fall.

"S-Star!" Staraptor ordered.

"Freeee!" Butterfree shouted, eyes glowing as it used its Confusion attack to try and slow their fall.

"Flygon!" Flygon yelled, unleasing its Sandstorm to help slow the basket's descent.

"Masquerain!" Drew's Masquerain's voice sounded as it used its Silver Wind to aid the other two in slowing the basket enough that it would land safely.

"Th-They helped us?" Jessie blinked as the basket touched down.

"N-No, day don't wanna hurt da babies," Meowth said, still scared out of his mind.

"In any case, we should get out of here before they come after us!" James squealed as he picked up the carrier and raced off.

"Right behind you!" the rest of the Team Rocket group shouted.

"Stop!" Misty's voice sounded behind them.

"Pika!" Pikachu's voice added.

"I-It's the twerpette!" the three screamed before running even faster.

"Drew! Tracy! You go check on the Pokémon!" Misty ordered as she continued to chase after the three, Pikachu running right beside her.

"Right!" the two boys nodded before splitting up to find them.

"For crying out loud, stop already!" Misty shouted, still desperately trying to catch up to the three.

"Never!" was the response just before Misty literally ran into a large building.

"Ouch…What the crud-" Misty started to yell before she noticed the logo on the building, "Oh flying Flaaffy…What is a Team Rocket base doing here!"

Quickly, the water Pokémon trainer and electric Pokémon scurried backwards before she was spotted. Hiding behind the nearest foliage, she wondered how long it would be until Jessie and James told the rest of the base that there were trainers chasing after them. Growling, she desperately tried to figure out what to do next.

"Misty!" Tracy called as he, Drew, and an exhausted Staraptor spotted the redhead hiding behind a bush.

"Shhh!" Misty sounded.

"What are you doing just hiding there?" Drew asked walking up to her.

"Get down, you moron!" Misty snapped, quickly pushing Drew down to the ground.

"What's going on?" Tracy asked, instantly dropping to his hands and knees.

"Those three morons managed to find the one thing that could be a serious problem for us…" Misty said, pointing towards the giant building.

"I-Is that a Team Rocket base?" Tracy stuttered.

"Yeah," Misty nodded, "It must be the first one built in Sinnoh too."

"Great…" Drew let out a heavy sigh, "Now what?"

"I…I don't know. We can't just go running in there all willy nilly but we can't just leave Finny and Rose in there by their selves…" Misty said biting her lip, "I think we should wait for Ash and the others before moving on…"

"Guys!" May's voice shouted behind them, "Where are you guys!"

"Look! There's the balloon's remains!" Max's voice followed.

"Yeah but where are the others?" Dawn's voice questioned.

"Misty! Where are you guys?" Brock's voice called out.

"Tracy! Go to them to keep quiet!" Misty barked.

"R-Right!" Tracy nodded before quickly going to lead the others to where they were hiding.

"Blaze!" May's Blaziken sounded as it landed next to Misty, scaring the life out of her.

"M-Mist…" Ash weakly sounded from Blaziken's back.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu yelled, rushing to his side as Blaziken lowered him to the ground.

"Star!" Staraptor shouted, doing the same as the other Pokémon.

"A-Ash!" Misty gasped, regaining her composure, "What happened to him?"

"Since we ran all the way here, some of the poison must have spread throughout his system a lot faster than normal," Brock panted as the rest arrived, "He'll be fine but he really should take some more antidote, especially since we'll be on the move from here on out."

"Right," Misty nodded, fishing out a bottle of her own antidote and quickly removing the cap, "Here Ash."

"Th-Thank you," Ash said, weakly taking the bottle from her.

"Go ahead and take the whole thing," Brock stated, sitting down to rest, "Man…I'm getting too old for this."

"Oh hush up," Misty scoffed, "If you're young enough to chase after Officer Jenny on her motorcycle, you're young enough to do this."

"When did Ash's body start to give out on him?" Tracy asked.

"Right before we made it to the crash site," May stated, "And even then, he tried to keep going."

"Idiot," Misty scolded, gently whacking the trainer upside the head.

"Sorry," Ash apologized, handing back the empty bottle.

"So what are we going to do now?" Dawn asked, staring at the base.

"That's easy," Ash groaned as he slowly stood up on unstable legs, "We're breaking in and taking this place down."

"You make it sound like it's going to be a walk in the park," Max deadpanned, "He doesn't seem to noticed that he's been wounded and poisoned."

"Why would that matter?" Misty asked, helping steady her friend, "His kids are in there. If he wasn't acting like this, I would be worried."

"Same," Brock sighed.

"Staraptor," Ash said, gaining the bird Pokémon's attention, "You did a great job back there. Return"

"Star…?" Staraptor whimpered, tears in its eyes as it returned to its poke ball.

"You take a good long rest while we finished this up," Ash smiled sadly at the poke ball before returning it back to its smaller state and placing it back on his belt.

"Seriously, what is the plan for us going after them?" Dawn asked.

"Like I said, we're breaking in and taking this entire place down," Ash smirked evilly, "It's about time that Team Rocket learned to leave us all alone."

Upon those words, the older members of the group slowly gained feral grins to match the trainer's, startling the newer members.

"You're finally tired of playing defense, Ashy boy?" Misty laughed evilly.

"Jessie and James won't harm the twins but the same can't be said about the rest of the organization," Ash shrugged, making sure his hat was firmly on his head as Pikachu jumped back onto his shoulder, "Plus, they owe me a new sweater."

"You have any clue what's going on?" Dawn whispered to Drew.

"No," Drew shook his head, "But this is the first time I've seen such a scary look on May's face.

"Let's go!" Ash shouted before charging towards the base.

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted.

The rest of the group followed close behind as the trainer reached for one of his poke balls. Taking his eyes off the path for a split second was all it took for Ash to run into their first obstacle…Literally…

"Ooof!" Ash sounded as his back collided with the ground, "What the…There's already a grunt?"

"What the…I thought that this base was the one that only had like ten grunts working it…" the man he ran into grumbled from his spot on the ground.

"Huh?" Misty and the rest blinked, staring at the strange man.

The man lying on the ground seemed to be wearing an outfit almost identical to Ash's jacket that he wore all through Sinnoh in design. The main body of the jacket was red, missing the bright yellow stripe going across the middle while the sleeves were black along with a red and white hat on his head. The man was several inches taller than Ash but his face belonged to a man who was in his forties. His body was built like a boxer's with less muscle. The guy's hair also seemed to match Ash's perfectly minus the few locks of white scattered through the short but wild cut.

"Ouch, did I run into a living wall?" Ash groaned as he stood up.

"Felt like I ran into a midget Tauros…" the man groaned as he stood up as well.

"Huh?" the two blinked before looking at each other, "_**Wahhh! Wh-What are you doing here!?**_"

"Wah?" the rest sounded in confusion.

"Y-You two know each other?" Misty asked.

"Of course I know him!" Ash growled, stepping back as Pikachu climbed back up to his shoulder after falling off, "He's my father!"

There was silence for a full minute before…

"_**Your father!?**_"

* * *

_**Mizu: Before you all start asking about why the group suddenly seemed evil, I decided that the only reason that Team Rocket hadn't been totally destroyed by now is because Ash and the others were holding their tempers so not to jeopardize their futures by going after such a huge crime organization. But now Ash has had it and has given the order that they are no longer going to be playing defense. **_

_**Ash: …I have two problems with this chapter.**_

_**Mizu: Let me guess, you not getting your kids back and the fact that your father appears.**_

_**Ash: Pretty much.**_

_**Mizu: Too bad! This is part of my plan! Remember that I love all reviews and suggestions~! Ciao for now everyone!**_

_**Ash: If I wasn't so injured…**_


End file.
